Four Eccentric Senators as Capitol Hill Roomies

That’s a problem for democracy, of course, but most of all for television comedy. It’s almost impossible to spoof political self-interest or government incompetence anymore — real-life examples pop up daily that are more preposterous than anything dreamed up on “Saturday Night Live” or Comedy Central.

So most shows about government have to go over the top. “Scandal,” on ABC, is an overwrought “Dynasty” with security passes. “House of Cards,” a Netflix series, is an updated “Richard III.”

“Veep,” on HBO, is as anarchic as “Arrested Development.” Viewers don’t know which party the vice president, Selina Meyer (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), represents, because the show isn’t about anything as old hat as ideological sparring; it’s about bullying. The joke is in watching politicians in suits and pearls abuse colleagues and subordinates in the language of Melissa McCarthy in “Bridesmaids” or Richie Incognito in the Miami Dolphins locker room.

Friday is the official start of Amazon’s first original series, “Alpha House,” a comedy that follows four Republican senators who share a townhouse near the Capitol. The show is the creation of Garry Trudeau, the author of “Doonesbury,” and while it covers the same territory as “Veep,” it’s not quite as heartless — or postmodern. Issues matter, at least to the show’s writers: Republican positions on same-sex marriage, Afghanistan and gun control are all ridiculed. And those jokes are the weakest, perhaps because they are so familiar.

The opening scene has nothing to do with policy or partisanship, and it is the funniest: The North Carolina senator Gil-John Biggs (John Goodman), a former college basketball coach, wakes to the sound of police sirens and hurriedly rouses his snoring housemate, Senator Vernon Smits (Bill Murray).

“Were you by any chance scheduled to turn yourself in at the D.O.J. this morning?” Gil-John asks as police officers gather at the door. Vernon screams an obscenity, and, as Gil-John looks on impassively, proceeds to curse, shriek, bang his head and weep in an uninterrupted torrent of rage and self-loathing that is, in the hands of Mr. Murray, hilarious.

Most of the writing, not surprisingly, sounds like vintage “Doonesbury.” Gil-John tells another housemate, Senator Robert Bettencourt (Clark Johnson), of Pennsylvania, why he feels no need to campaign for re-election. Voters in North Carolina, he says, know his record: “Two undefeated seasons, 11 conference titles, two national championships.”

There is a beat, and in what sounds like a line in the last panel of a cartoon, Robert says dryly, “Yeah, that does speak for itself.”

Andy Guzman (Mark Consuelos), a divorced, Marco Rubio-esque Florida freshman who has an eye for the ladies and the Oval Office, takes over Vernon’s room. Senator Louis Laffer Jr. (Matt Malloy), a prissy, nervous Mormon from Nevada, faces a macho primary challenger whom he describes, enviously, as “a buffalo rancher who has legally killed two people.”

Louis makes an appearance on “The Colbert Report,” and what is most telling about that story line is that Mr. Colbert plays himself, conducting a make-believe interview on his mock talk show on Comedy Central. One of the irritating things about Washington insideritis is the coy way news anchors like Brian Williams or George Stephanopoulos play themselves on comedies and dramas. Now even the comedians who make fun of real anchors are willing to play the game.

Gil-John, who normally doesn’t bother to campaign, has a new and more formidable challenger: Duke University’s current basketball coach, who is a god in North Carolina. “You’re a god, too, Gil, but you’re like a retired god,” Louis says. “He’s active.”

Even Robert, a suave and self-assured senior senator, cannot seem to shake a looming ethics investigation.

When all four sign up for a Congressional fact-finding mission to Afghanistan, political survival, not public service, is the order of the day.

That’s hardly a fresh observation about Washington, but Mr. Trudeau has a feel for not just political hypocrisy but also character, and this cast manages to bring life and even some charm to these Capitol Hill caricatures.

“Alpha House” is not yet as sharply honed as “Veep,” but it could get there; it certainly has plenty of material to work with.

Alpha House

The first three episodes are available on Amazon. Additional episodes will be made available each week for Amazon Prime members.